Monday, September 24, 2012

There has been much controversy in the news about Chik-fil-A and their ties to the anti-gay movement. There are many reasons, including actual admittance, that warrant these allegations. Chik-fil-A was listed by the anti-gay marriage organization known as Pennsylvania Family Institute (PFI) as a co-sponsor of two marriage conferences. Chik-fil-A's chief operating officer Dan Cathy not only told the Christian news service Baptist Press that the company did support a “traditional family” but then he appeared on “The Ken Coleman Show” and stated that he believed advocating same-sex marriage would be “inviting God’s judment on our nation". Just yesterday, after months of public outcry and withdrawal of some corporate support, Chik-fil-A has claimed to longer"support political or social agendas". This decision has caused quite a backlash, not only amongst Christian Rightists, but amongst the white supremacist movement as well.

Quote and screen shots from Stormfront.org:
"Many White Nationalists supported Chick-Fil-A because it was in our interests to stand up for the traditional values that were instrumental in creating Western Civilization."

We can assume, just as Rick Garcia, senior policy adviser for the Civil Rights Agenda has, that the motivations behind this "change of heart" are strictly financial. The need to sell more chicken and climb to the number one rank as the nations largest chicken chain is clearly more important to them than their twisted homophobic beliefs.
So what does it mean if Chik-Fil-A has changed its policies? From our critical perspective this is a success because it has dried up funding that would otherwise be going to homophobic groups and nonprofits, and not because a capitalist corporation decided to become "moral". Under capitalism, a businesses very existence is based on the exploitation and alienation of every single living thing it reaches; from the person who grows/raises the food, to the person who cooks the food, to the person who serves the food, to the person who eats the food, and even to the food itself. It's not a matter of Chik-fil-A making "greedy" or "selfish" choices, it's the inescapable nature of capitalism. So we need not praise them, or Starbucks or any other business simply because they choose not to fund groups that promote homophobic bullshit.
Against Chik-fil-A, against Starbucks....against homophobia and capitalism! For a classless, free society!

Chicago nazis are in a really bad place currently. The Illinois National Socialist Front (INSF) have been dead for a long time now, the National Socialist Movement (NSM) Chicago unit doesn't even have the ability to bring in a single new member (Suzan Lenner is the state contact), Marcin Golebiowski's local White Power music venue has stopped doing shows, and the Ashford House scuffle has forced Beckie Williams to drop out of the game while leaving other attendees, like Jeffrey Burns (AKA "Thomas Stuart"), shell shocked. There are obviously many individuals left; James Logsdon and his non-existent Illinois Creator comrades have a BBQ at his house in Bloomington, IL now and again, but there is no real recruiting forces or functional organizations left at the moment. Does this mean we sit back and relax until some new losers step in front of the wrecking ball? Fuck no. Aside from the fact that our list of enemies is ever growing and spans far wider than just white supremacists, we still want every last fascist, regardless of if they belong to a crew or not, to feel the heat. According to a recent email, the Lienbergers aren't the only ones feeling that heat. Apparently a white supremacist was spotted on the south side at a Swap-O-Rama and "got confronted to say the least". Keep an eye out for this guy at local flea markets in Chicago. He goes for the porn and the shoes and has white pride tattoos on the back of his arms. See a picture of his face here. If anyone has any info on this guy, get in touch.

Sunday, September 9, 2012

Early this morning (Sunday, Sep. 9th) Chicago antifascists threw chunks of rock through the windows of two businesses associated with neo nazis. The first was Excalibur tattoo & Body Piercing (2913 S. Harlem Ave Berwyn, IL) owned by long time neo nazi Will Leinberger, and the second was Jade Dragon tattoo (5331 W Bellmont Ave), who knowingly employ Wills twin brother, Fred Leinberger.

"Fred and Wills nazi days didn't end in the 90's. The Leinbergers attended the 2009 Hitler birthday celebration organized by Art Jones, the 2010 Hitler Birthday celebration organized by Patrick Leyland, and may or may not have attended the failed 2011 Hitler celebration organized once again by Art Jones."

To read more info about Fred and Will, including wills long criminal record filled with many racially motivated attacks, see south side ARA's post here:

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

William Nelson is a long time white supremacist involved with the Aryan Brotherhood (AB), a white supremacist prison gang and organized crime syndicate in the United States with about 20,000 members in and out of prison. Allegedly he was one of the youngest men ever brought in. He is a 45 year old iron worker and has done three bids in Illinois, two in Michigan and a lengthy juvenile stretch in either California or Arizona, all adding up to a total of 23 years in prison. He has been arrested for robbery, assault, and one of his arrests was for a hate crime in which he took a cop out for the bare minimum as he had several weapons charges and assaults.

Tim Bishop of the Aryan Nations wrote a letter to the parole board in Michigan seeking to stop him from receiving parole in 1998 because William threatened to beat him for running his mouth about his armed robbery activities to the media.

Counselor McNabb at Pontiac Correctional center has been quoted saying "Nelson is a violent dangerous convict, he hates every one especially black & latino inmates. He has assaulted several other prisoners based solely on their race as well as staff and he writes threatening letters to staff all the time." Apparently they would not let him go to Protective Custody because they had concerns he'd try to "organize the whites". William does not like his photo being taken (see more here and here) and does not like crowds.

Nelson has "SS" lightning bolts tattooed on the left side of his neck and on the right side of his neck he has "Sinn Fein". Under his left inner bicep he has"AB" and "666". On the back of his left arm is "WHITE" and on the right is "WRATH"

Heather Marie Pittman (center)

William was married to Heather Marie Pittman on October 13th, 2011 in Mishawaka, Indiana in a KKK wedding ceremony performed by Imperial Wizard Ray Larsen. Heather is a white supremacist herself. She claims to be a direct descendant of Confederate General Albert Pike. On August 7th, 2012 she pleaded guilty to drug possession (Dupage County case no #2011CF1543). Heather allegedly has a history of heroin addiction and goes to a methadone clinic in Downers Grove weekly. She has been convicted in Texas for "unlawful sexual contact with a minor".

Nelson has close ties with the Gaylords street gang in Chicago and was arrested while on parole last August by DEA & ATF & DUMEG who tore up his house looking for drugs and guns. They found nothing but he spent 3 weeks in jail for "unlawful gang contact".

William Nelson

1020 East division St. apt. #F

Lombard, IL60148 (630) 854-1606

has a 2nd residence at 635 West James st.

Villa Park, IL 60148 (630) 833-7644

Quotes: "If its worth fighting about its worth killing about", " I dont punch m.f.'s in the mouth, I punch 'em in the throat & I dont punch m.f.'s in the eye I gouge their eye out"

David Conrad of Morton Grove, 51, fired shots with a high-velocity air rifle, which is powerful enough to penetrate skin and even to kill, at the Muslim Education Center near his house. Previously, the mosque and community center had it's windows smashed by unknown assailants. The FBI is not investigating, and the matter is being looked into by local police. Conrad has been charged with three counts aggravated discharge of a weapon and one charge of criminal damage to property. He has not been charged with a hate crime.

David has been living adjacent to the mosque for 12 years and causing problems the whole time.

One day later, on August 12th, a 7-Up bottle filled with acid was thrown at a Muslim Institution in Lombard, IL during Ramadan prayers. No one has been taken into custody and it would be impossible for us at South Side ARA to speculate as to who did it, but, for information's sake, there is one neo-Nazi we know of living in Lombard. He is a recruiter for the American Nazi Party (ANP), under the guidance of Paul Kozak.

We have received a tip from Loonwatcher Ali that another Muslim institution was attacked yesterday in a possible hate crime, this time in Lombard, Illinois. The prepetrators hurled a 7-Up bottled filled with acid at the school during Ramadan prayers. This is the second attack in as many days in Illinois and underscores a very quick rise in violence across the country.

This is the full text we received from Ali, apparently a press release from a Chicago based organization known as the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago:
Last night the College Preparatory School of America (CPSA), a full time Islamic school in Lombard IL and a member of the CIOGC had a 7-up bottle with acid and other materials thrown at the school during the night time Ramadan Prayers. During the prayer worshippers heard a loud bang outside the school and went out to find an empty bottle thrown on the window of the school, there were no injuries. Lombard police were contacted and a report has been filed, an investigation is in process.

“This is not an isolated incident, a few days ago another CIOGC member institution the Muslim education Center in Morton Grove, IL was also attacked” said CIOGC Associate Director Ahlam Jbara “It is election year and the fear mongering from elected officials such as Representative Joe Walsh creates hate in communities such as Lombard, IL”

Judy Levey, CEO at the Jewish Council on Urban Affairs said, “We are deeply concerned about the recent string of events, which violently target faith minorities, and Muslims in particular. Our own Jewish historical experience of being a minority has taught us of the dangers of stereotyping and demonization a vulnerable community. The Jewish community must not, and will not, stay silent.”

On Friday, August 10, 2012 CIOGC held an interfaith press conference calling on Representative Joe Walsh to retract his bigoted statement on Muslim Americans. The faith communities in Illinois stand together against injustices in our State. We will not tolerate hate mongering; discrimination and personal campaign agenda’s that create division within our communities.

CIOGC urges DHS, Attorney General Office and other authorities to increase protection and investigation of these violent acts on Muslim institutions.

LOMBARD, Ill. (CBS) — An Islamic school in west suburban Lombard is at least the second Muslim institution to report an attack this past weekend.

The Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago says the College Preparatory School of America, an Islamic school at 331 W. Madison St. in Lombard, was subjected to vandalism on Sunday night.
The council says someone hurled a 7-Up bottle filled with acid and other unspecified materials at the school during the nighttime Ramadan prayers.

During the prayer session, worshipers heard a loud bang and went to find an empty bottle thrown on the window of the school. No one was injured.

No one was in custody as of just before noon Monday, and there were on suspects, Lombard police told CBS 2.

In the past month there has been a string of Islamophobic attacks, one in which 6 were killed.

A mosque burned early Monday in a fire described as suspicious, just a month after an arsonist set fire to the building's roof.

Muslims left the Joplin Islamic Society after Ramadan prayers about 11:20 p.m., said Imam Lahmuddin, the society's religious leader. A passerby reported the fire four hours later.

“It was really burning when we got here,” said Bill Dunn, fire chief in Carl Junction, the city just north of Joplin where the mosque is located. “The fire got inside and broke through the roof.”

Dunn said the fire is suspicious, though investigators cannot yet prove it was arson. Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms retrieved a surveillance video box, which they are sending to the FBI for analysis, he said.

The blaze happened a little more than a month after a man attempted to set fire to the building. The man has not been identified, but his image was caught on surveillance cameras on the morning of July 4. There is a $15,000 reward for information leading to arson charges.

The FBI also investigated the torching of a sign at the mosque in 2008. That arson was never solved.

“This should not stop us from serving God,” said Lahmuddin. “We still have to fulfill our obligation. We will do our prayer in other places. If we don’t find a place, we will do our prayers in our home."

The fire happened in the middle of the holy month of Ramadan, which Muslims mark with fasting. Many make more frequent visits to the mosque for daily prayers during the month.

Omar Ahmed, 15, said some local Muslims stay at the mosque overnight during Ramadan, but no one was there at the time of the fire. He arrived about 5 a.m. to the mosque surrounded in pillars of smoke..

In a suburb 30 miles south of Nashville, the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro has faced legal challenges and illegal threats over the past two years.

Shortly after construction began in 2010, a vandal spray-painted the phrase "not welcome" on a sign announcing the new mosque. Federal investigators were called in after an arson fire destroyed excavating equipment at the site. And members of the congregation said they received threatening letters, phone calls and emails.

Residents opposing the mosque filed an unsuccessful lawsuit to block its construction by claiming that Islam was not a real religion and that Muslims intended to replace the U.S. Constitution with Sharia Law.

Construction nearly halted in May when a local judge ruled that Rutherford County officials had failed to provide sufficient notice of the meeting in which the building was approved. But U.S. attorneys intervened, arguing that the county judge had created a separate standard for the Islamic Center. A federal judge ruled in favor of the mosque.

Our thoughts?

In some of these cases there are suspects or arrests, in others, no leads at all. Some would find the latter of outcomes to be a failure. Even those of us in South Side ARA, who have far more fundamental critiques of the state, find it interesting that in the case of Conrad there is no hate crime charge.

We see relying on the state to deal with this issue as a major mistake. Not simply because of the failure to call David Conrad's attack a hate crime. We know that such a charge would hardly deal with the source of the sickness. It is a mistake for far more fundamental reasons. The state couldn't give a fuck less about the nature of the attacks outside of the fact that lack of arrests may threaten their perceived legitimacy, and will not help further the justification for their existence. Lets not forget the state-sanctioned xenophobic repression of Arab-Americans, Muslims, and Middle Easterners in the US post-911, the criminalization of their identity.

The State's approach, regardless of their incentive, is purely reactionary rather than preventative. How are they attacking Islamophobia?

We must monitor the far right, the white supremacists, the fascists. These are the type of people or ideologies that are creating these attacks. Police organizations such as the FBI may monitor these individuals and groups but without concrete evidence of illegal doings, and so long as there are no whispers of anti-State rhetoric (because we know when the State feels challenged law need not apply), not much will happen. We must challenge them based on their ideology and organizing efforts rather than simply wait for them to act in an "illegal" or hostile manner.

We advocate taking the fight directly to the fascists. Disrupting white nationalist organizing efforts, be they propaganda or action, directly challenges the State's role as mediator in social affairs. We should also not be shocked or surprised by the violent outbursts of white supremacists like Michael Wade Page, considering the genocidal bent that is the basis of their ideology. While there is no way to prevent all violent outbursts and attacks by white supremacists, stopping their organizing prevents them from spreading their ideas and slows the recruitment of new members filling their ranks.

About

Contact: southsideara (at) riseup.net

TORCH Points of Unity:

1. We disrupt fascist and far right organizing and activity.

2. We don’t rely on the cops or courts to do our work for us. This
doesn’t mean we never go to court, but the cops uphold white supremacy
and the status quo. They attack us and everyone who resists oppression.
We must rely on ourselves to protect ourselves and stop the fascists.

3. We oppose all forms of oppression and exploitation. We intend to do
the hard work necessary to build a broad, strong movement of oppressed
people centered on the working class against racism, sexism, nativism,
anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, homophobia, transphobia, and discrimination
against the disabled, the oldest, the youngest, and the most oppressed
people. We support abortion rights and reproductive freedom. We want a
classless, free society. We intend to win!

4. We hold ourselves accountable personally and collectively to live up to our ideals and values.

5. We not only support each other within the network, but we also
support people outside the network who we believe have similar aims or
principles. An attack against one is an attack against all.